Tuscan Ridge | The Villa | Booking Info | Virtual Tour | Guestbook | Gallery | Map | Tourist Info | Golf | Contact Us | News | Home

Entry to the USA: New Requirements from October 2006

Visa-free travel to the USA for British visitors

Information about requirements to enter the USA under the visa waiver programme follows, but we advise you to check the following web sites:

- US Embassy website, www.usembassy.org.uk
- The Foreign & Commonwealth Office’s latest travel advice for the USA, at www.fco.gov.uk.
- The UK Passport office, www.ukpa.gov.uk.

VISA-FREE TRAVEL TO THE US

VWP countries, including the UK, are required to have a biometric passport issuing system in order to continue as members of the Programme and benefit from visa free travel to the US after that date.

The US also announced a requirement that all new passports issued on or after 26 October 2005 must contain a digital photo image to enable the holder to travel to the USA visa free. This does not affect the UK as we have been issuing digital passports since 1998.

This means that:

British citizens with machine-readable passports containing a digital photo image will not require a visa to visit the USA because they meet the criteria of the 26 October 2005 VWP deadline.

British citizens with machine-readable passports but without a digital photo will still be able to visit the USA visa free as their passport was issued before the 26 October 2005 deadline.

British citizens without a machine-readable passport must obtain a machine-readable passport or apply for a US visa before visiting the USA.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office and UK Passport Service (UKPS) welcome the US decision. It will now enable the UK to finalise the developments of our biometric programme and allows British visitors to continue to visit the US visa free.

Entry to the USA: New Requirements from January 2009 Visa-free travel to the USA for British visitors

Commencing 12^th January 2009 all Visa Waiver Program travellers to the USA will be required to obtain an electronic travel authorisation prior to flying. Travellers will need to log on to Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) web site (https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov) and complete an on-line application. This will prompt answers to a series of biographical and eligibility questions very similar to those that appeared on the old paper I-94W form.

Applications are encouraged as early as possible and at the very least no later than 72 hours before travel. A response is usually received within just a few seconds. Assuming approval is granted this is valid for two years or until the expiration of the passport concerned, whichever comes first. It is valid for multiple entries into the USA. Stays of 90 days or less still do not require a visa. Travellers who fail to secure prior approval for trips after 12^th January 2009 may be denied boarding, experience delays at immigration upon arrival in the USA, or may even be denied admission to the USA.